On Sept. 27, 2020, he was diagnosed with schizophreniform disorder, a form of psychosis with symptoms resembling schizophrenia but lasting less than six months.
Schizophreniform is a sort of ”psychosis” in which a person cannot distinguish between reality and imagination. It influences how people act, think, feel, and interact with others. It impacts a person’s thoughts, behavior, emotional expression, and interpersonal relationships. But as shown in the first few seconds of his music video of the song “Padayon,” he was ultimately the exact opposite of who he is right now.
Beginnings
Joseph Ian Diel, better known by his stage name Jid Durano, began as a bedroom producer making beats at his grandfather’s workplace while he was going through a difficult period. He also dropped out of college and had nothing left but music as his only outlet.
He released a string of singles at the beginning of his career, using pressure as his inspiration and drive. Releases included “Same Way” with Karencitta, “The Life” with Mark Beats, “Lady” with Samantha Louise, and “Issues” and “XO” with John Roa. In the following years, he continued to put out new tracks and received contributions from artists Ron Henley, Midnasty and James Reid via Careless Music.
Music became an outlet for the artist to fully express himself as someone who grew up in a broken family and a battered child for almost seven years. Jid Durano became secretive about his emotions as he grew up with his grandparents.
His latest song “Padayon,” with its official music video released on April 9, talks about Jid Durano’s experiences and his advocacy. He shared that the idea popped out while he was in his room alone, lying in bed, thinking about what song would best represent him and inspire the people he wanted to receive his message.
“I just want people to have an open mind and think about what happened to me, other addicts, and the other recovering addicts. It was hard for them, and you people won’t experience what we experienced, and you experienced life differently from our way; life is wonderful. There’s more to life than just drugs,” he shared.
Recovery
Battling substance abuse and schizophreniform were challenging mountains to climb as mental disorder isn’t openly discussed in the Philippines, and people suffering from it are often stigmatized and treated as outcasts.
In his documentary entitled “Dagkot: A real-life documentary film of Jid Durano” — available on YouTube and Facebook — the musician bravely faces his fears, doubts and past and openly talks about his life as a recovering drug addict.
For Jid Durano, rehabilitation was indeed a game-changer. Before, he had this misconception that rehab is for crazy people and that people going through it were just doing nothing but laying in bed wasting time. However, he was enlightened and learned a lot by being educated about drugs and their effect on the user when abused.
Resurgence
While undergoing rehab, he prepared himself by seeking help through prayers, and reading inspirational material while working on himself. The moment he understood what healing was, he knew that place was meant for him since all the things he sought were there.
“It really shaped my life as I found purpose, and my life now has direction compared to before. I was the type that wanted to try different things; getting involved as much as I could, as I was searching for myself and where I would excel,” he said.
Revival
God changed the narrative of Jid Durano’s life. God helped him recover. From being the curious lost boy, he turned into the personified version of hope as he continuously aims to spread his advocacy to share light and hope. Jid Durano said everyone shares the same sentiments; we have individual life stories. He also added that he doesn’t want to be his past self anymore; he doesn’t want to experience such a thing again as the schizophrenic episode he experienced two years ago. In the documentary, he shares how he wants to move forward and leave things that might hold him back from recovering.
Making music for nine years helped Jid Durano find his way outside the endless tunnel of darkness. It changed his life. God granted him new life through art. S